Transforming Teacher Education through Clinical Practice A National

Transforming Teacher Education through Clinical Practice: A National Strategy to Prepare Effective Teachers -Dr. Dwight C. Watson -University of Northern Iowa

WHY DID NCATE COMMISSION THE BLUE RIBBON PANEL? n n Response to urgent need to ensure effective teachers for all children Leveraging role of accreditation to drive reform among diverse providers Redesign and transformation initiative Response to prominent calls to examine clinical preparation (e. g. , National Research Council report)

PANEL GOALS n n n Develop design principles for clinically based model; Make recommendations on how stakeholders can aid this transformation; Address the connection between clinical preparation and public and professional accountability

The Challenge & the Opportunity n Gap between how teachers are prepared and what schools need for student success Response to urgent needs n Preparation for 21 st century teaching n n Align preparation with the needs of practicing professionals

Panel Recommendations n n n More Rigorous Accountability Strengthening Candidate Selection and Placement Revamping Curricula, Incentives, and Staffing Supporting Partnerships Expanding the Knowledge Base to Support what Works and Continuous Improvement

More Rigorous Accountability n Teacher preparation programs should be held accountable by how they: n n n Teacher preparation programs will have more rigorous accreditation and program approval and will held accountable to: n n n address the needs of schools help improve PK-12 student learning a clear and definte timeline for change and implementation the same high standards for all programs School districts will have a more significant role in: n n n designing and implementing teacher education programs selecting candidates for placement in in their schools addressing candidates performance and progress

More Rigorous Accountability Points to Ponder (Personally reflect on these questions) • • Will your role shift if the recommendations were implemented? Why or why not? How will these recommendations affect your college, school, or department? Do you currently have any elements of this recommendation in place? How will you begin to implement these recommendations?

Strengthening Candidate Selection and Placement n n n Residency model similar to medical model More selective and diverse candidate Focus on staffing hard-to-staff schools Clinical internships in schools that are structured and staffed to support student learning Supervised by clinical faculty drawn for higher education and the PK-12 sector Supervisors will determine if candidates are ready to enter the classroom on the basis of candidate’s performance and student outcomes.

Strengthening Candidate Selection and Placement Affinity Share (share with a person from your institution) n What is your understanding of a residency model? n How can your program be more selective? n What is your program doing to recruit and retain diverse candidates? n Do you have partnership agreements with hard-to-staff schools? n n What is the nature of your clinical supervision? At what point in your candidates’ development do you have supervisors for clinical? Who are your clinical supervisors? What role do supervisors play in determining if candidates are ready to enter the classroom? Is the determination based on the candidate’s performance and student outcomes.

Revamping Curricula Incentives and Staffing n n n Redesign program to support the core coupling of practice, content theory, and pedagogy Model appropriate use of assessment to enhance learning Re-evaluate reward structure in academe to support clinical teaching and legitimize the role of clinical faculty Create new staff models so that clinical faculty, mentors, teachers, coaches, teacher interns, and residents can work together to better educate students (teaching hospital model) Development of rigorous criteria for the preparation, selection, and certification of clinical faculty

Revamping Curricula Incentives and Staffing Cross-cultural Dialogue (Discuss with members outside of your institution) n n What is the intersection of practice, content theory, and pedagogy at the varied institutions? Discuss models and reward structures in that supports teaching and legitimize the role of clinical faculty. What must we do to make this teaching hospital model a reality in which clinical faculty, mentors, teachers, coaches, teacher interns, and residents work together to better educate students? Discuss criteria for the preparation, selection, and certification of clinical faculty.

Supporting Partnerships Walk-about (Meet with someone from across the room) n n n How do we engage state policy makers to embrace these recommendations? What can we do to limit candidates in over demand programs such as social studies and elementary education? How can we leverage our institutions to financially support these recommendations?

Expanding the Knowledge Base to Identify What Works and Support Continuous Improvement n n n Currently, no large research base on what makes clinical preparation effective Encourages federal, state, and philanthropic support of research in this area NCATE should facilitate a national data network among interested collaborators

Mapping the Shift Table Talk (Read and discuss the distributed material) n n n Compare the current model to the needed model. Discuss your institution’s movement to the needed model. Which of the needed model will be easiest to embrace.

Blue Ribbon Panel n Sponsored by: n n n NCATE: www. ncate. org Visit to review full report AACTE: www. aacte. org Chaired by: n n Nancy Zimpher – Chancellor State University of New York Dwight Jones – Commissioner of Education, Colorado State